A collection of travel and adventure stories

Lake Oroville Kayaking

Description and Directions >>

Description:
Lake Oroville is a man-made lake located in the foothills on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, downstream of the junction of the Feather River's major tributaries. The lake is large, with 15,810 acres of water surface area, and 167 miles of shoreline.

Activities:
kayaking, boating, fishing, hiking, camping, picnicking, swimming, sightseeing

Directions to Lime Saddle Marina boat ramp:
From Sacramento (about 75 miles): take I80 east to Highway 65. Continue on Hwy 65 to Hwy 70. Stay on 70 North through Marysville and Oroville. When you get to Oroville, continue approximately 12 miles on Hwy 70. Watch for the Lime Saddle Recreation Area and Pentz Road sign. Turn left on Pentz Road and follow approximately 2 miles to marina entrance.

Story Date 5/7/2006
Publish Date 6/11/2006

Story Perspectives >>

According to Mikala: Lake Oroville is a typical man-made California lake located in the foothills, although a very large one. The shoreline consists of grassy hills and oak trees. The larger part of the lake has rockier and steeper shorelines.

We put in at the Lime Saddle Marina boat ramp. We only kayaked a small portion of Lake Oroville...about 5 miles roundtrip. We paddled to the left of the marina, past grassy, green hillsides and anchored houseboats. As we continued on, the hillside became steeper and made it hard to find a place to land. We finally stopped at one hillside and dragged our kayaks up for a short lunch break.

As we paddled on to the wider area of the lake, the shoreline became rockier. The trees were too high up the shore to provide any relief from the sun. These types of lakes are not my favorite kayaking spots. I much prefer the smaller, natural mountain lakes with boulder strewn shores.

Lake Oroville is great for speed boats or jet skis...not very compatible with kayaks or peaceful paddling.